A young woman was left feeling anxious and afraid when she couldn't find transport home from a Green Day concert on Monday night.
After the gig, Lauren had to walk from Marlay Park by herself as there were no buses available. The Green Day fan was desperately trying to hail a taxi but became more worried when crowds started to dwindle.
She had to ring her boyfriend and friends in the middle of the night to try and arrange a safe way home from the venue. Lauren told Dublin Live that she would never go to a concert in Marlay Park again unless transport options improve drastically.
Read more: Dublin Bus slammed after Green Day fans forced to walk to city centre from Marlay Park
She said: "I moved back at the concert towards the exit for buses and just at the end of the concert just so I could beat the crowds a bit and I spoke to a steward and he said that there is buses going into town from a certain field.
"I went to that field and I spoke to another steward who said the buses were two fields down. I went down there and spoke to a guard who said I wasn't going to get a bus now because it was too late.
"I walked then from the bottom exit of Marlay park up Ballinteer avenue to Dundrum. My boyfriend was on the phone trying to get me taxis. I was trying to get taxis along with loads of other people.
"My friend ended up waking up and coming to get me in Dundrum at like 1:40am. My phone was dying and everything.
"It’s a safety issue more so than anything. I shouldn’t have to worry about going to a concert on my own because it might take over two hours to get home.
"So many other people were in the same boat as well. On the 15 minute home drive up through Dublin there was lots of people walking who had obviously given up on taxis.
"More public transport needs to be put on for these concerts. The do it with the Luas for 3arena and they did it for Forbidden Fruit as well."
Lauren says she would rather stick to gigs in town because at least then she knows she can walk home. She worries that other people will be left stranded at Marlay Park over the summer months.
She said: "I wouldn’t worry if it was in town like the RDS, Aviva or the 3arena, because worst case scenario I’ll have to walk a bit of the way home. That isn’t really ideal either though.
"It was alright leaving the place because there was so many people but when the crowds started to dwindle and there was only a few people at Dundrum I did start to feel a bit uneasy. I’m generally grand with walking at night and stuff but I was starting to panic a bit when no taxis were coming."
A Dublin Bus spokeswoman said: "Dublin Bus is responsible for the operation of PSO services. Our full schedule of services is operating across Routes 14, 16 and 61, with some diversions in place.
"Dublin Bus is not in a position to provide additional services for the concerts and Longitude Festival 2022, at Marlay Park. The National Transport Authority is aware of this and made this position clear to concert organisers, well in advance of the event.
"Please see https://www.transportforireland.ie/events/marlay-park-2022/ for full details on the transport options and services available."
Dublin Live has contacted MCD for comment.
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